GamerSushi Asks: Halo Killer?

halo-killerEver since Halo claimed the console FPS throne, several games have come and gone to try to take the title “Halo Killer”. As if all of FPS-dom were some huge hill that could be overtaken, and fans would automatically shift their allegiances to this new god-like app with the ability to fell Master Chief and his minions.

Personally, I find that to be a load of garbage, as does The Goozex Report, which has an interesting article up discussing how Sony May Never Have a Halo Killer. While many Sony games have tried, none have come close, and honestly, I don’t see it happening any time soon. Not because of any deficiency of the system, it’s just the fan base is so large I can’t see it being slain and won over.

Not even with Killzone 2, which Sony expects to outsell MGS4 (seriously). Personally, while I’m excited about a lot of games for the PS3 this year, Killzone 2 just isn’t even on my radar. It’s like everyone forgets that the first one was just mediocre.

So what do you guys think? Do you see a Halo Killer coming along any time in this generation? And is Killzone 2 actually going to be any good? Tell us your thoughts!

Source- The Goozex Report

The Most Anticipated XBox 360 Games in 2009

xbox360-1It’s kind of a given that in terms of AAA titles, Microsoft has really set the bar high over the last couple of years. From games like Mass Effect, Gears of War, Halo, and even some great XBLA titles like Castle Crashers or Braid, the 360 set itself up as a gaming machine with some unique content. Will 2009 continue the trend?

Gamasutra compiled a list of the most-awaited games of 2009 for Xbox 360, and the answer might be a sad, resounding “no”.

A quick perusal of the list reveals just a few exclusives, and two of those are Halo spin-offs (ODST and Halo Wars). The only game I can say I’m really looking forward to that is exclusive would have to be Star Ocean: The Last Hope which looks like a proper honest-to-goodness JRPG. So what about you guys? Excited about any of these games?

Source- Gamasutra

Who’s Got The Best Exclusives?

console-warsIn the epic fanboy debates of ages past and present, the ultimate factor always turns out to be console exclusives. Being able to tout a game that the other console doesn’t have wins major points, even if the other side pretends that they wouldn’t touch Halo or Metal Gear Solid if it was on their console of choice. Yeah. Right.

However, these days, console exclusives are light. Since games cost more to make, it’s just not financially reasonable to make an exclusive for one console when you can make more money by spreading the love and your game around.

Unigamesity has put together a list of the pure console exclusives from 2008, and compares their Metacritic ratings. Who wins? You might be surprised. For the record, I think Left 4 Dead should have been included on the 360 list. Sure, you can play it on the PC. But console-wise, you can only play it on the 360, which is what matters for the purposes of this argument.

Source- Unigamesity

Review: Fallout 3

fallout-3-zombie Having been a great fan of Bethesda’s earlier RPG series, The Elder Scrolls, I was eagerly waiting for Fallout 3 and their decision to make it into a FPS/RPG hybrid. Not having played any of the previous Fallout games, I was not concerned with any drastic changes they might have made, so this review will come from the perspective of a Fallout noob.

Continue reading Review: Fallout 3

Review: Left 4 Dead

left4deadIf anybody knows anything about anything, they know that zombies are the glue that hold this world together. Or at least, that’s my view. Throw zombies at any crappy old movie/videogame/book and it instantly becomes a winner. Really, I’d be happy if everything had the undead rolling like waves in the sea, overtaking the helpless innocents.

So you can imagine my excitement about Left 4 Dead. Not only because it is chock full of zed heads, but also because it is the spawn of legendary developer Valve, those messiah figures turned game makers (if you can’t tell, I kind of like them). When you break it down, it’s been hard to argue with their track record over the last few years.
Continue reading Review: Left 4 Dead

The Star Wars Battlefront III That Could Have Been

battlefrontI loved me some Star Wars: Battlefront II. Seriously. I played the junk out of that game online with some friends of mine. We would often just square off against an army of bots, playing as heroes, grunts and whatever else held our fancy to enjoy us some killing, Star Wars style. I think it’s one of my favorite games of last gen, and have been dying for a sequel.

Well, apparently, Free Radical was working on one. I say was with such emphasis because Free Radical just closed up shop in the last couple of weeks. The game has now passed on to Rebellion, so it’s still making its rounds, but recently some SW Battlefront III screenshots have made their way to the intertubes of some of the models being worked on. Granted, these are Free Radical’s designs and are from a year or so ago, but I find it pretty interesting.

Check them out, as some of them are rather fancy. Did any of you guys play Star Wars Battlefront at all? Thoughts?

Source- Kotaku

Left 4 Dead DLC Soon?

left4deadLeft 4 Dead, how I miss thee. I’m in Tampa right now and it’s been almost a week since I’ve been able to slaughter hordes of the undead with my all-powerful assault rifle or pump-action shotgun. Soon though. Soon I’ll return to ridding the earth of these vile minions. And who knows, maybe something new will be waiting for me.

According to Valve writer Chet Faliszek (dude bra), some DLC is coming out for L4D pretty soon. Nothing too definite, but it does sound like it might contain some new “scenarios”, which I take to mean new campaigns. Which is kind of awesome. The SDK for the PC should be out at some point as well.

Unfortunately for those of us silly enough to own this game on the 360, the DLC is going to cost some money, while PC users get it for free. I think it’s totally ridiculous that MS insists on charging for ALL DLC that they release, even if the PC counterparts get them for free. It makes no sense at all to me, especially since I pay a subscription to XBL already.

So, who’s excited about more L4D?

Source- Shacknews

Review: Fable II

f2A few years ago, a new RPG from Lionhead Studios promised great adventures for XBox players. The premise was simple: create a character in the world of Albion, and tackle your quest however you wished. Want to kill villagers? Sure! Want to be a goody-too shoes? Go for it! While the game ultimately promised more than it actually delivered, many consider it to be a staple of the old XBox.

Fable II has now returned players to the realm of Albion, with promises renewed of an open world and a sprawling, epic tale. I eagerly picked the game up a few weeks ago, and started in right away. As some of you know, I’m a complete tool for open world games, so the prospect of diving into a new fantasy world that wasn’t Ivalice or something from Star Wars was very enticing.

So how did it hold up?
Continue reading Review: Fable II

Left 4 Dead: Death From Above

Left 4 Dead has sucked away much of my waking life over the last few weeks. The versus mode is intense, addictive and most of all, incredibly fun. While I suck at the hunter, I know that there are quite a few people out there that have mastered the impeccable timing required for the dreaded wall jump of death. This video highlights a dude with what some might call mad skillz.

Review: Prince of Persia

prince-of-persiaThe Sands of Time, the Warrior Within and the Two Thrones were some of favorite games on my PS2, especially the Sands of Time. The fantastic controls, the platforming, the sweaty palms as I guided the Prince past buzzsaw traps and rolling logs with spikes…all of it made for a fantastic gaming experience.

So with great excitement, I started on this latest adventure. First thing to note is that this is not a sequel or a prequel or anything like that. It is a reboot, no characters return except the Prince (who isn’t even a prince now) and Farah (who is now a donkey). This kind of thing never really bothers me, so I can’t blame the developers for wanting to start fresh on a new console.

Continue reading Review: Prince of Persia

Resident Evil 5- Gameplay in the Refinery

Resident Evil 5 might have some of the best graphics we’ll see this gen. Seriously, the level of detail, the crisp motion blur, all of it comes together to form a stunning picture… of incredible zombie violence. And this is always a good thing. It’s nice to see some more gameplay footage, and not just trailers.

Anybody else excited about this?

Star Ocean: The Last Hope Trailer

The new Star Ocean: The Last Hope trailer is full of that oh so special JRPG flavor. And I heart it very much for that.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again- they just don’t make JRPGs like they used to, but Star Ocean for the XBox 360 looks to be all kinds of epic, with some sweet graphics, and ridiculously fun looking battles. Plus, there are spaceships. Sign me up!

Halo 3 Still Truckin’ on XBL

halo3xblSeriously? I mean, I get it, the Halo franchise is big and all. I understand that people like it, love it even. I fathom the power with which the game can hold you, transfixed upon its HUD. But what I don’t follow is how, with all these great games out, Halo 3 still tops the charts for XBox Live. Here is the list for the past week:

1. Halo 3
2. CoD: World at War
3. Call of Duty 4
4. Gears of War 2
5. GTA IV
6. Left 4 Dead
7. Madden NFL 09
8. Fallout 3
9. FIFA 09
10. Fable II

If you own numbers 2-4, and are generally playing Halo 3 more than those, you may have a mental deficiency. Just saying, is all. What games have you guys been playing online the most these days?

Source- Major Nelson

Square Enix Hearts Them Some XBox 360

Uh, get out your fanboy flame bats once again. We all know that the console wars get a little heated at times, and quotes like this just add fuel to the fire. Apparently, the director of Last Remnant had some pretty interesting things to say about Microsoft’s console:

In fact, as we’ve only just finished work on Last Remnant I don’t even know what my next project is going to be at Square Enix. However, I’m very much hoping it’ll be for Xbox 360 as it’s been a lot easier to work with than PlayStation 3.

O noz! This isn’t the first time a developer has talked about this. In fact, Valve’s Gabe Newell said something about it some years ago. However, one always has to take these things with a grain of salt, especially considering Last Remnant supposedly sucked donkey balls.

Flame on!

Source- CVG

Mirror’s Edge DLC Trailer is Trippy and Totally Sweet

Not sure how many of you guys have gotten around to playing Mirror’s Edge, but one of the things that I hear a lot is that despite it being a lot of fun, it’s got some flaws. Namely, having to fight with soldiers as well as other crazy ninja parkour dudes, which is just not everyone’s cup of tea.

There is a new trailer out for the Mirror’s Edge DLC, though, that looks to be all of the fun of the actual game, minus the combat. To me, when I see this, I’m like, dang, I’d pay for a game that was just THIS. What do you guys think?

Review: Gears of War 2

A few years ago, Epic introduced us to the wonderful world of Sera, and its monstrous inhabitants, both human and locust alike. Gears of War was a flagship title for the XBox 360, quickly becoming THE reason to own Microsoft’s next-gen system, and it made its mark in a rather commanding fashion.

For me, Gears of War was the first and biggest “next-gen” experience I’ve felt when playing a game, where I had a moment that made me say “Wow… this is the next gen”. The co-op play, the graphics, the score, everything about it came together to create an experience that was part Predator, part Aliens, part video game and all awesome.

So how does the sequel fare?

Continue reading Review: Gears of War 2

New Final Fantasy XIII Trailer Says Nothing New

So I feel like I’ve been seeing the same Final Fantasy XIII Trailer for 2 years. It’s always the same shots, over and over, and we still don’t have any gameplay to look at. Granted, the same thing was the case for FF XII and that game turned out to be incredible, but even still. Anywho, here’s a new FFXIII trailer.

What do you guys think? Will this game be any good?

New Batman: Arkham Asylum Trailer Has Sizzle

Not only sizzle, but also Akira trails on the Bat pod and “zzzzt” editing effects! Fancy. But even fancier and more fascinating to batfans out there is just how moody and dark this trailer is. I love the design on the Joker, and the shot of Croc at the end is just awe inspiring. Count me excited.

Microsoft Wants Crackdown Part Deux

I find Crackdown to be one of the most underrated games of this generation, and a testament to pure platforming bliss. While the open world could have had a few more options and the story was lacking, the gameplay was addictive and the agility orbs could weaken even the strongest man’s resolve.

That’s why it’s exciting to hear several dudes including XBox Live’s Major Nelson talking up the possibility of a Crackdown sequel. Unfortunately, Realtime Worlds immediately began work on the MMO titled APB, which is essentially an MMO version of GTA, in a sense. I guess nobody knew that Crackdown would take hold like it did, despite the packaging of the Halo 3 beta. Go figure.

I can’t wait for a Crackdown 2. What do you guys think? Did any of you play the first one? Am I on the crazy bus?

Source- VG247